Tough Loss in Miami Leaves Patriots Officially Ousted From Playoffs
Bob George
Jasen Vinlove-USA TODAY Sports
SOCIAL DISTANCING FROM HOME The most disappointing element of Sunday’s loss at Miami was that the game was winnable until the very end, and the Patriots didn’t have the material to pull it off.
Bad run defense, bad tackling, bad quarterbacking, all of these shortcomings bedeviled the Patriots all season long. The Dolphins, primed for a playoff run which will be perhaps short lived but well deserved, officially eliminated the Patriots from playoff contention with a 22-12 win at Hard Rock Stadium on Sunday. They did so by being mostly methodical in overtaking a team they are better than by a mile on paper. In other years, the Patriots win this game easy against a rookie quarterback. But this was a game where the rookie quarterback didn’t need to be good.